Bhawanipatna, March 22: A suspended Panchayat Executive Officer (PEO) in Odisha's Kalahandi district was arrested by the state Vigilance for allegedly embezzling government funds of over Rs 3 crore for cricket betting and online gaming, an official said. The arrested PEO was identified as Debananda Sagar.

He was accused of embezzling public money to the tune of Rs 3.26 crore from Talnegi gram panchayat and Podapadar gram panchayat under Thuamal-Rampur block in Kalahandi district by abusing his official power and forging the signature of sarpanch of the panchayats, the official said. Sagar allegedly transferred to money to his personal bank account, he said. Online Betting, Gaming, Gambling Ban in India: Government Issues Order To Block 1,298 Platforms Including Websites, Mobile Apps Promoting Online Betting, Games and Gambling.

Debananda Sagar joined government service as PEO in 2016 and was posted to Talnegi gram panchayat. Later he was also put in charge of PEO of Podapadar gram panchayat. He misappropriated the government money from May 5, 2018 to March 17, 2022, the official said. "He used the government money on cricket betting through online portal," the vigilance said in a statement. Case Booked Against 11 YouTubers, Social Media Influencers for 'promoting' Betting Apps.

Earlier, in 2023, he was booked by Vigilance for misappropriation of government funds to the tune of Rs 1.04 crore and was placed under suspension. The Vigilance on Friday had arrested a panchayat executive officer (PEO) in Ganjam district for allegedly embezzling government funds of over Rs 43 lakh for cricket betting and online gaming.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)